At present, a regular MAC lipstick is priced at INR 1700. I have to agree they are one of the best available lipsticks. Yes, they are very expensive. But, the texture, pigmentation, colour payoff, longevity are incomparable to most lipsticks available in the market today. The commendable part is that MAC has not changed its formula for most of their products in so many decades! Most brands research trends and come up with shades and textures every season and when you run out and want to restock, they never have the same shade. MAC comes up with few limited addition/special collection lip shades at times. But, most of the products/shades/textures/formula have been the same since time immemorial 😉 Chances are, your great grand-kids will be able to purchase the same lipstick your mother bought from MAC….as a teenager! I have been using MAC cosmetics for over a decade now. Many of their products are really good; some of them are bad and really not worth the price though. I’m not going to review products here; I’ll save that for another post. But, I’m here to tell you about their little-known secret, their recycling program. I have known about this program for almost as long as I have known the brand. MAC has a very loyal fan base. But unfortunately, not many people are aware of this recycling program. They never advertise about it. If you walk into a MAC store, you never have anything displaying this valuable piece of information.
So here is how it goes. If you return 6 old/used/expired MAC products or just MAC products you don’t like/intend to use anymore, you get a free MAC lipstick….of your choice! Yes, you even get to pick your shade! How awesome is that!?!? Of course there are some ground rules. This is an initiative to support recycling; so the containers must be recyclable in nature. That means you cannot return a sharpenable kohl pencil that is at it’s bottom end or a sponge bit or a makeup removal sheet. As a general rule, plastic and metal containers are returnable. Primary packaging like empty lipstick tubes,compact box cases, foundation bottles, skincare tubes and jars, retractable pencil cases, spray bottles etc can all be returned to the store as part of the ‘Back to MAC‘ program.The flimsy outer packaging {paper/box} is not really considered an item that can be returned. MAC refers to these as secondary packaging. Samples are not considered returnable items.
You can exchange these for any regular lipstick of your choice. MAC does have a few special edition lipsticks at times. You cannot really get those in return. But, remember I mentioned earlier – most of their lipsticks have been in production since decades and will still be for many more decades to come. So, it is definitely a good deal. You have so much to choose from – matte/ retro matte/ cremesheen/ amplified. Their Viva Glam collection has very few lipsticks; they’re so beautiful. But, you cannot chose from those because 100% of that money goes to the MAC Aids Fund.
This is the official statement from MAC cosmetics: Because we share your commitment to the environment, M·A·C accepts returns of its primary packaging through the Back to M·A·C Program. By returning six [6] M·A·C primary packaging containers to a M·A·C counter, you’ll receive a free M·A·C lipstick of your choice as our thanks to you. Please note, lipsticks provided at no charge cannot be returned or exchanged. I am not a employee of MAC and am not affiliated with MAC in any way. I’m sure their policy is subject to change. But, now that you know – hold on to those old empty containers. Collect them and when you finally have six, you can march to the store to bring home Mehr or Taupe {some of my favourite classic matte shades}.
To recycling, Ruelha
Inhale Peace; Exhale Love. Joy will Follow! - RUELHA 